


A Letter Addressed

by vaultbug



Category: Kirby (Video Games)
Genre: Kirby Fighters 2 spoilers, M/M, whereas king dedede is an idiot and meta knight is the idiot in love with him
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:28:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26686681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vaultbug/pseuds/vaultbug
Summary: "It'd be a tower," King Dedede says. It's bait. It's pure, sweet bait to lure Meta Knight onto his side. "Think about it. A tower, marked with your sign, stretching all the way to the heavens...""You're completely wasting Dreamland's resources.""And you'll be able to duel on the top," King Dedede says.Bugger.
Relationships: King Dedede & Meta Knight, King Dedede/Meta Knight
Comments: 15
Kudos: 157





	1. The Proposal

It's King Dedede who brings up the plan, inevitably. They're sitting across from each other at a table in the middle of Waddle Dee construction zone, vastly absorbed in an intense showdown of Go Fish that Meta Knight for the life of him can't remember how he agreed to it. He's also losing, which is both surprising as it is mortifying. As he fumbles over his cards, trying to recall if Dedede had a ten or ace, the King puts his elbow on the table between them and takes a long sip from his coffee. When he stops, there is a semi-malicious grin on his face.

Meta Knight pauses. He knows that face. That's the face that usually gets the palace even more decimated than before. The Waddle Dees around them must recognize that face too, because their repair work on the castle intensifies to almost scrambling. "You’re staring," He notes cautiously as Dedede takes another sip and keeps on grinning. "What is it?"

The King contemplates. His grin stays fixed. "I have an idea," he says and it's almost casual.

Ah. "No," Meta Knight rejects.

The King barges over him. "Hear me out. I have an idea and I think you'll like it." He sets the coffee cup down. "So you know Kirby, right?"

Meta Knight waits for King Dedede to carry on, and when he doesn't, sighs. "Yes," he grits out. He cannot tell if the idiocy is to get under his skin or just plain Dedede.

"Ah, perfect." King Dedede takes another sip. "So. You know how he's our rival, right? Cursed him under the setting sun, that sort of deal. But, here's the thing. That squirt's been getting rather soft lately. Like a little marshmallow. And we're getting soft too."

Meta Knight, who prides himself immensely on his sharp edges and the jagged sword at his side, gives him the look.

"No, no, not like that," Dedede says. A sly grin creeps to the corner of his mouth. "You're so stiff you'd give ol' Whispy a run for his money. I mean, we're getting soft on Kirby."

Soft...on Kirby. Meta Knight looks at Dedede now, interest half-piqued but exasperated already. "Get to it, my King."

King Dedede beams. He always does when Meta Knight calls him by that. It shouldn't be one of the endearing traits of the idiot but Meta Knight's heart lightens anyways. "See, that's why I like you, knight. No beatin' round the bush." He lowers his cards and whispers, half-conspiratorial, across the table. "When have we last fought Kirby?"

Meta Knight blinks. Thinks about it, for a few moments that spirals into a minute of contemplation. He remembers bits and pieces of the duel Kirby and him had undergone a while ago -- but that was under the influence of the Jamba darkness and with half his wits at the time. He thinks further back and remembers his wings, swallowed by tech, vision constricted to a mere optic. He quickly stops thinking then. "Well," he says eventually as Dedede eagerly looks at him, "I can't quite recall."

Dedede harrumphs. It's a triumphant noise. "It's been about two years," the King says. "Give or take."

Two...years? "Again, my King, we've been busy." He pointedly looks around the demolished remains of the King's castle, then to the horizon where remnants of Haltmann's technology are still being scraped away by Popstar's inhabitants. In the distance, the Dreamstalk sways gently with the wind.

"Hardly an issue. We've challenged Kirby while hindered by less."

Meta Knight gives him another look.

"Alright, so we haven't. But listen, it's been a good bit since we were invaded. I haven't chased any eyeballs out of my closet for a while. And Kirby's been...quiet." King Dedede sets his cards down. Meta Knight takes it the game has been forfeited and lowers his too. Thank stars. He wasn't ready to be completely creamed by the terribly incompetent Dreamland King. "So. Why not now? Give Kirby a good ol' go, to settle the rivalry once and for all. And --" the King stops suddenly, eyeing him. It's familiar. It's bright. It has Meta Knight's guard, for a complete second, to drop. "And I was wonderin’ if you wanted to join."

Meta Knight has a hard time finding words then. There's a lot of thoughts going through his mind. Good riddance. No. Leave right now. But what he finds himself saying is, "Why?"

He shouldn’t have asked. Dedede’s eyes light up and then the King fishes something from his sleeves. "So I've done some reading," he says and pulls out two massive books, crammed with bookmarks and post-it notes alike. “Bit of light reading, bit of investigating.”

Meta Knight eyes the books, then him.

"Shut up,” Dedede says. “I do know how to read, you know.” The offence is feigned. 

“I never said anything of a sort, sire,” Meta Knight says with the well-meaning sarcasm that Dedede knows well. “I am not the knight to lie and slander.”

“Oh, that so?” The King puffs up his chest and does a rather insulting mockery of his voice. “Then why do I remember this? _Ah, my sire doesn’t know how to read the alphabet from A to Z. I will deliver the news myself._ ”

Meta Knight considers that. “I don’t remember that one,” he admits. “Was that before Kirby started dragging us across Dreamland or --?”

“When you were busy fishing the pieces of your beloved floating tank out of the ocean,” Dedede says.

Ah. That would explain it. “Hmph,” Meta hums. “I was rather peckish then.”

“Peckish would be understating it.” King Dedede snorts. “Anyways. So I was readin’ -- I can hear you smiling, shut your mouth -- and I came across this entry ‘bout a thing called a Buddy Tower. Now, hear me out, it’s a tower based for rivalries between two teams. The one who builds the tower can challenge another person, and each has to pick a friend to accompany them. Whoever has the better pair and wins gets to claim the tower, that sorta schmuck.” 

Meta Knight waits.

“And I was wondering -- well, what’d you think? It’s a tower for settling rivalries. You and Kirby got beef. Me and Kirby got beef. What if we -- y’know?”

Meta Knight knows where he is going with this. “I don’t understand,” he says, feigning obliviousness.

“I will have the Waddle Dees put salt in the sugar container,” Dedede threatens. “All of them. Even the one you hide on the top of the fridge where you think I do not see it. You know what I mean.”

“I don’t see what’s in it for me,” Meta Knight replies. 

“You’re full of it,” Dedede retorts back, half a grin on his face. “I can see your wings twitchin’ from here. See, the tower has to reach the heavens because the gods gotta see the rivalry be clashed out. That means everyone will see it. Popstar and other planets too. You’ll be viewed as a powerful fighter.”

“I still don’t see what that implies,” Meta Knight says again. His voice quavers. _Dammit_.

"It'd be huge," King Dedede suggests. It's bait. It's pure, sweet bait to lure Meta Knight onto his side. "Think about it. A tower, marked with your sign, stretching all the way to the heavens..."

"You're completely wasting Dreamland's resources."

"And you'll be able to duel on the top," King Dedede says.

Bugger.

Meta Knight grapples with his growing interest, tries to suppress it. It’s not that they have been doing anything lately, come to think of it. The Halberd is steadily being repaired by the Meta-Knights and it’s left him grounded without much to command. His schedule has been unnervingly free. It wouldn’t really _take_ much out of him to join King Dedede’s quest for rivalry. Actually -- and he fights the thought before it settles -- actually, it might be a nice break from everything. Bring it back to the roots. A ol’ fashioned duel, two vs two. 

“Hm,” he says.

King Dedede crows. “You’re considering it,” he cackles as Meta Knight slumps a bit down in his chair. “Oh my stars, you’re actually considering it. And here I thought I might have to go bully Taranza to join me -- would you actually? I always thought we’d work nice together and I could have your back and you know, sword and hammer makes a pretty good double combo --”

“My King,” Meta Knight tries to say.

“-- and you know, I’m not saying we’d be like, _sworn partners_ or anything but it’d be fun! We could have the matching statues and banners and invite a couple more buddies just so Kirby won’t have an easy time of it getting to the top -- and of course Kirby’s going to invite one of his buddies so we’d _have_ to figure out a way to accommodate that, and I’m going to have to retune my hammer up, the mechanics of it are going --”

“King Dedede,” Meta Knight tries again.

“ -- and of course we can’t have Kirby fighting us right away so I’m going to have to get some doppelgangers done of us, because what’s a good ol’ fight without some clones? Yes, and I suppose I’m going to have to give the Waddle Dees more work -- or I suppose we could pick some bots off ol’ Susie, she still owes me about fifty billion in damage and repairs and therapy bills, but the Waddle Dees always like working on these big construction projects, I know Bandana Dee wouldn’t mind, maybe a combination of tech and Dee power --”

“Dedede,” Meta Knight tries one last time.

“ -- and okay, I’m jumping a bit to conclusions here but like, it’d be a pretty organized set-up here, the Buddy tower needs to be perfect so if you want to take over the construction you can, you’re much more organized than I, and also the training spars, we’ll have to do those because as much as we’ve fought together against like, uh, Magolor and a few others but the puffball always been there as a, uh, third-wheel and I can offer my blacksmith area, so you can sharpen up Galaxia; actually, really, you could use my whole castle maybe move in until construction is done, it’s going to be a bit until we actually get the tower built so --”

Meta Knight thinks, _ah, screw it._ “Yes,” he says.

King Dedede stops. Well, it’s not so much a stop as it’s a crash, burn and explosion. His words snap off in a rushed, “ _hough_ ,” and then the King is coughing, covering his face with one glove. When he finally stops to meet Meta Knight’s gaze there’s something burning in his eyes. “W-Wait,” he chokes, “Y-yes? You’d -- with _me?_ ”

“Yes,” Meta Knight says again simply. 

There is silence. Then King Dedede pumps up both hands like he’s won the lottery, letting out a noise Meta Knight can only describe as elation. The Waddle Dees pause to watch as the King jumps up from his chair, scattering cards across the floor. “Yes! I knew I’d win you over,” he barks, half a laugh and before Meta Knight can react, he’s emerged in a hug that can only be described as violent. Before he can even thrash or fight his way out of the grip Dedede lets him go and twirls around to the nearest Dee. “Change of plans. Stop working on the castle and find me a plot of land that’s big and vast, preferably unoccupied but I don’t care if you start on Magolor’s territory. And you, start gathering supplies! Tear down the castle walls if you like! We’re building this baby and she’s going to look _hot_!”

The Waddle Dees scatter.

“And you!” King Dedede turns back to him then. He’s still frozen unfortunately, his brain caught up on having been squished between the King’s arms (had he _really_ just hugged _him,_ of all people ?) Thankfully, his liege does not notice. “You should go inform your knights. And then we can,” and he gestures to the both of them. “Y’feel?”

“You are a King of many words, sire,” Meta Knight hears himself say distantly. 

King Dedede flushes. “Shaddup,” the King answers, delighted. “And don’t call me _sire_ , we’re partners now. Call me Dedede or I’ll ram my hammer up yours the next time _my King_ or _sire_ comes out your mouth.” He then shoos him with a swat. “Go on. Git! I can handle the Dees here.”

Meta Knight rolls his eyes. “Is it too late to regret the agreement?” He snarks.

“Yep. Verbal agreement. Bound by life.” King Dedede crosses his arms. “See you tomorrow then?”

Meta Knight pauses. He considers it, just long enough to watch Dedede get antsy. Then he says, “Of course, _Dedede_.” 

Dedede beams again. It hurts to look at, the pure excitement. Meta Knight has to look away not to get drawn into it too. “Damn straight.” He agrees. “Tomorrow then. Now git!”

Meta Knight nods and leaps off the side of the castle into the horizon. He ignores the thrill in his heart, the adrenaline coursing through his veins. The wind whistles through his mask as he careens down to brush the forest canopy below, spreading wings to sail.

“And don’t forget your sword!” Dedede’s voice echoes behind him. 

_Nova strike me down,_ Meta Knight thinks. _I’m smiling._

He almost flies into a tree then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For a side-game, Kirby Fighters 2 fed me too good.


	2. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Dedede and Meta Knight spar outside the castle's grounds.

The next day Meta Knight ends up taking the Halberd back to the castle, although he bemoans the scrapes and patchwork still lining her left side as they lift off. The Meta Knight Corps don’t question him for the sudden change of heart; actually they’re quite amicable at start, reporting to the deck and readying the ship when he gives the order. Halfway there however, is a different story. Vul starts shifting around and Mace is clicking his weapon against his palm – gestures, Meta Knight knows, means they have anxious questions. With a silent sigh he waits for one of them to break and speak up.

Vul does. “So, my knight,” he says delicately into their silence, “Not to, uh, undermine your intellect but – why are we doing this?”

He can’t very well say _because it makes Dedede smile_. “Clarify your words, Captain,” he says instead, hoping to the stars his abruptness quiets Vul.

It does not. Captain Vul crosses his wings and says, bluntly, “So we’re helping Dedede.”

Meta Knight sends a side-glare to him.

“I mean no offense, sire,” Vul continues. “I’d follow you to the ends of the universe if ya demanded it and this is no different. But – why _Dedede?_ He uh, he doesn’t have that big a track record.”

“He stole my cake once,” Mace Knight offers from the back.

“Everyone’s stolen your cake,” Axe shoots back.

“ _Hey_.”

Meta Knight waits for them to stop bickering, then raises his hand. Silence falls over his crew at the gesture. “He came to me asking for assistance and his plan we discussed was rather...sound,” he informs them. It almost sounds authentic.

Almost, except for one small detail that Vul is quick to point out. “ _Sound_ ,” the bird says. “King Dedede’s plan was _sound_.”

Meta Knight grimaces. “Yes,” he replies after a pause.

The crew takes a moment to digest that. They obviously find it completely unbelievable because Axe Knight’s next sentence sounds...dubious. “You don’t have to make excuses, my Knight,” he chirps. “I mean we’re not going to judge you if you just want to hang out with the King.”

His knight makes it sound like they’re pals. Meta Knight feels his face begin to flush and grits out, “I am not hanging out with the King.”

“I mean, it kinda does sound like it,” Mace adds. “You don’t usually sail around on the Halberd unless you’re trying to impress someone -- not saying you aren’t impressive, my Knight, but you do love your dramatic entrances.”

“But that’s the thing,” Javelin interrupts before Meta Knight can violently denounce that statement. “Why try and impress Dedede? He would be impressed by a lollipop so long it looked at him right.”

“It’s a...date?” Sailor Dee offers. 

Meta Knight’s brain screeches to a halt.

Flummoxed silence. Then, as Meta Knight feels his face begin to turn a wonderful pink, the deck explodes into noise. “Are you serious??” Blade Knight cackles from behind him -- he is promptly interrupted by Sword Knight, who has dropped his weapon in all his delight. “With the King?! You’ve scored a date with the King?”

“Oh my stars,” Javelin murmurs. The poor lad looks like he’s going to faint.

“I mean that’s one way to get to the throne,” Vul notes. He’s already got a notepad out plotting some scheme or other. Meta Knight wants to strangle him.

“I am _not_ dating the King,” he snarls.

“Yet,” Sailor Dee says back. The little brat’s eyes are smiling. 

Meta Knight considers the ramifications of driving the Halberd into the ocean once again, but settles against it.

* * *

They do let him leave eventually after a thousand more questions, ones that Meta Knight answers with grunts, stares and violent _nos_ . Blade Knight manages to dart around him and polish bits of his armour he can get at; something that Meta wouldn’t normally allow had he not been _surrounded_ by a bunch of _morons_. “Good luck,” Javelin tells him as he finally makes his way to the door. “You’ll do great. Just be yourself!”

He’s going to demote them all to cleaning the armory for this outright slander.

“You pull up with your giant ship at the crack of dawn,” is how King Dedede greets him, muffled complaints through a mouthful of coffee. His eyes, although clouded with remnants of sleep, do not look tired in the slightest. Rather, they seem shrewd, a characteristic that Meta Knight would have never associated with Dedede if he had been still the stoic bitter knight he was many a year ago. Now, he knows differently. “I didn’t even know she was still flying after Haltmann.”

Meta Knight hums. “Repairs come easier after the seventh explosion,” he says.

“That much is true.” King Dedede gets closer and rests his elbows on the balcony of his suite. He holds out the other cup of coffee. Meta Knight, after a beat, takes it. “So, what’s the plan?”

“I assumed you had one.”

“Buttering me up, huh? Good answer.” Dedede shoots him half a grin. Then he notices Meta hasn't even attempted a sip of his coffee and raises an eyebrow. "Are you going to drink it or what?"

Meta Knight shifts uncomfortably. 

He notices that. “Do you not like coffee?” The King asks and Meta feels something in him clench at how his voice seems to lighten a little bit. “I mean, I could go get the Dees to make you something else...?”

“No, it is not that.” Meta Knight feels how his face burns and is thankful once again for the metal plate. 

Dedede waits for him to elaborate; then he notices and the realization dawns all over his face. “Oh,” the King says. “ _Oh_ , right. Forgot about that."

Meta Knight thumbs the mug carefully.

“Hm. Well...if it helps, I ain’t about to stare,” King Dedede says after consideration. “I may have a rude reputation and curiosity might get me in the works but I know you don’t want others to see your face and I ain’t about to break that trust. Go on. Drink. Besides,” and the King grins again, thumbing the sun rising over the clouds, “I bet the sunrise is much prettier than your face.”

Meta Knight hesitates. Then, bracing himself away from Dedede, he slowly unclips his mask to take a sip of the coffee. It’s sinfully sweet, just the way he likes it. How Dedede got that information is beyond him.

“Thank you,” he says after a moment of savouring the taste.

“No problem.” He hears Dedede shuffle behind him but no hands turn him around and he gets the feeling Dedede isn’t looking at him at all. “So, the plan was going to be that we both go to the plot of land and drag supplies there – _but_ , you brought your rust-bucket so I’m rethinking it a bit. How much can she haul?”

Meta Knight takes another sip, and quips, “I can guarantee you that _rust-bucket_ could haul your dingy castle and then some.”

That gets him a bark of a laugh. “Dingy? Aye, quit your mouth. You’re crushing me Dee’s hearts. They do hard work for a building that keeps getting knocked down.” A pause. “Seriously though, could it haul everything?”

“Yes.” _And I could replace my insubordinate crew with your Dees while I’m at it_ , Meta thinks.

“Not sure if I wanna trust your tank with my resources,” Dedede adds after a pause. “You think she’ll explode halfway there?”

“Excuse me?” Meta Knight says.

“You’re excused."

Before he can put any thought into it, Meta Knight brings out his wing and swats the King gently behind him. There’s a choking noise, then a clatter of a mug. “ _Knight_ ,” Dedede hisses after a moment of coughing. 

“Yes, sire?” Meta Knight says innocently after a sip of his own. 

There’s some grumbling then. “I’m going to regret this partnership, ain’t I,” the King mutters after he finally clears his throat. Meta Knight slides his mask back on to face him. “Fine, fine. We’ll use your craft. I’ll give the order to my Dees. But -- ah, while we’re waiting…”

“Training,” Meta Knight finishes.

They stare at each other for a few moments, then Dedede starts to grin. “Reading my mind already, eh? Yeah, sure, why don’t we get some training done while we wait? Some light sparring. How’s that sound?”

“Define light,” Meta Knight says.

“I got a nice open field behind my castle that hasn’t been scorched yet,” Dedede smirks. “Why don’t we go n’ mess it up a little?”

For once, Dedede has a good idea. “Lead the way,” Meta says and when Dedede beams, pretends Sailor Dee’s words aren’t echoing all the way through his soul.

* * *

Ten minutes finds them standing across each other in the field, Dedede hopping up and down as if to wake his limbs. Meta Knight has unravelled his cape by then into his wings, casually flexing them to feel the wind against their membranes. "Are you sure no blunted edges?" He calls as Dedede finally finishes his warm-up and slots himself lazily across from him. His hammer is resting gently on his shoulders. "I do not wish to end your dynasty by simple mishap."

"Oh, quit yer worrying," Dedede says back and pats his hammer fondly. "Me n my gal here will do just fine. You should worry about yourself, little knight."

_ Little knight.  _ Irritation sparks through him. "Very well," Meta Knight obliges and unsheathes Galaxia. She glints in all righteous fury, and as he points her edge towards the King, Meta can feel her amusement curling up her blade into his mind. He ignores it. "Prepare yourself, my King."

Dedede slouches, cocky expression still on his face. "Get on with it, Mety," he laughs. 

Meta Knight squints. He is wide open.  _ Fine _ , he thinks as the King waits with an expectant smug look and dashes forward. 

He is met by the hammer.

It's not full force. He's seen full force (Kirby, batted across an arena and into a wall) but it sure as hell hurts like one. Meta Knight spirals from where he's launched and flings himself up into the air just before the King's hammer lands down again, swiftly bringing his wings against the King's side as he soars upwards. Dedede laughs -- a joyful thing, and jumps back. "Come now, I'm not chasing you!" He taunts after Meta Knight's retreating form. "Get down here and fight!"

_ Malicious git,  _ Meta thinks. “Make me,” he calls down.

King Dedede does exactly that. He leaps -- completely unfair how easy the motion looks, Meta thinks -- and swings; Meta Knight dives and hits the ground in a stance to avoid the blow. It is then they start exchanging blows; steel against hammer, light blows that aren’t enough to mortally wound but enough to wind a lesser warrior. Meta has the advantage; while Dedede is powerful, he is slow and the low swings of the hammer are easily avoided as long as Meta keeps his focus. 

Or not. Meta goes to swing but is stopped by the sight of Dedede flinging his hammer at him with a nasty grin. He’s lucky the thrown hammer glances off his side but the power behind the blow is enough to make him double-back. Not fast enough though. Dedede’s grabbed him by the time he tries to fly -- and then, world spinning, Meta finds himself thrown across the field. He bounces twice, grimaces and drives his sword into the ground, tearing a long strip into the ground as he skids back. In the corner of his eye he sees Dedede grabbing his hammer from where it landed.

“That shut you up,” Dedede cackles. “What’s the matter, knight?”

Meta pulls himself upright.  _ Ow _ , he thinks. “Not bad,” is what he says instead. “But not good enough.”

“Says the one winded,” Dedede jabs back. “Feeling your age?”

Hmmph. Meta Knight stands straight then, makes direct eye-contact with the King. Dedede’s too smug to see the danger in it, how Meta Knight relaxes and makes himself open. “Your attack then,” he offers to the King. 

Dedede eyes him. Calculating, but smug; a combo that’s made Dedede lose some battles in the past. “You sure?”

“Yes. Unless you’re scared,” Meta replies.

That gets the fire he was hoping for. Dedede huffs, grins and pounces. Meta Knight flings himself back and rips himself into four.

He knows it has worked as soon as he hears Dedede’s yelp; and when he opens his eyes, he sees three other versions of him by his side. Dedede’s out on the ground, buried up to his head -- and as he struggles to free himself, Meta has to catch his laughter before it curls out. “You’re quiet now, sire,” he mocks instead.

"Hey now, that's new," Dedede says as soon as he’s wrestled himself out of the dirt, casual as if Meta Knight hadn't just knocked him flat into the dirt. He flips up and backwards; then starts circling Meta's clones with a fine eye. Meta sees his fingers twitching on his hammer as if impatient. "Since when have you taken a trick outta Marx's book, huh?"

"You can ask the Sisters that," Meta shoots back. It is odd to talk like this; all his clones speak as one, think as one so his voice is chanted by three others at the same time. Dedede is startled as well -- the King spares a shy glance at the other duplicates before refocusing. “It was that Heart who added this trick.”

"So you’re telling me the evil heart left you with the power to split into copies, but left me with nothing but a stomach ache?” Dedede exclaims. “I’m offended.”

“Did you want the ability to grow enormously jacked on command?” Meta Knight asks.

There’s a pause. Dedede’s focus goes off the fight and into the distance, contemplative. “Well,” he muses with a serious tone. “I mean...”

Alright. Time to put a stop to that thought before Meta Knight accidentally invokes a long side-quest to rebuild the Jamba Heart just so King Dedede can gain a side-ability to grow buff. The clone farthest away flings a sword towards Dedede; the King barely blocks it before the fight is off again. “ _ Hey _ ,” Dedede scoffs -- but he doesn’t get any other words in otherwise before his four clones are pestering him with blows. 

Their sparring continues from there without words, no banter, just a silence accompanied by smiles and amused huffs. It is then Meta Knight realizes how smoothly intertwined they are, Galaxia interlocked with his hammer. Their movements match one another, sliding into place as if they had always known each other while sparring. Is it because of the foes they’ve faced together? Something else? Fighting has never been so familiar to him, felt like a lock clicking in place. Dedede laughs from across the field, friendly curses every time Meta lands a blow and it warms a part of Meta he has not felt for a long, long time. 

But it is over too soon. Three more blows land and Dedede finally heaves, “Alright, break,” and promptly collapses flat on his face. 

Meta Knight gently lands next to him -- the clones vanish in a flash of purple -- and as it becomes clear Dedede is not moving for a while, sheathes Galaxia. With a bit of well-deserved smugness he asks, “I did not push you too far, did I?”

“Quiet,” Dedede snaps back, but the harshness is muffled by the grass. 

There is silence then. King Dedede rolls over and they watch the castle then; from this distance his knights and the King’s Dees are small blobs of colour scurrying back and forth from the castle to the Halberd. Meta is reminded of their words then --  _ date _ , Sailor Dee laughs -- and frowns. 

“We’ll have to find someone to bully into fighting us,” Dedede says suddenly. Meta looks over to find the King bouncing his hammer up and down in his hand. “Someone who’ll put up a fight. Maybe two, if need be. Can’t just train beating the crap outta one another.”

Meta absorbs that. Then he says, “There’s Magolor --”

“Absolutely not,” Dedede shoots down.

Meta sighs. “I’m surprised you’re more irritated at him than Taranza,” he says as Dedede continues mumbling curses about the mage. “Compared to some foes, he was not so bad.”

That sets Dedede off. “Wasn’t that bad?! He’s a lazy tyrant!” his King exclaims. Meta ignores the urge to point out his hypocrisy. “See, at least lil’ Taranza carried me all the way up to the clouds for his queen, all grit and hands-on stuff! Magolor yanked us around until we delivered the crown straight into his hands. What type of lousy, no-good fer nothin’ prick --”

Oh, bother. Meta cuts Dedede off before he starts yelling. “Not Magolor then. Anyone else?”

Dedede ponders. Then he says, “There’s always the Mirror.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Figured.” 

They ponder a bit more; but Meta’s thoughts slip away from potential practice bouts to the hammer Dedede keeps tossing up and down. He’s reminded of metal then, the mask the King sometimes wears. The question slips from his mouth before he can consider the ramifications of it. “Will you be wearing your mask during the fight?” he asks.

Dedede pauses. His face goes into a hard line then -- a sour note, Meta thinks and for a moment he regrets bringing up the mask. But suddenly that foulness to Dedede’s face is gone and the King puts his hammer down. “I dunno, Meta.” The King says lightly. “Every time I seem to put on a blasted mask these days, I get possessed. I might start warding them off.”

“Surely that’s not true.”

“Taranza,” Dedede argues.

Meta Knight pauses. “Right,” he concedes. “But you were also using an axe that time, if memory of your tale serves right.”

“That’s true as well.” Dedede starts stretching; he’s preparing for a second round of sparring, Meta notes and a flicker of fondness goes through him at that. “Hm, though, no, I think I won’t go too deep into mechanics this time around. Don’t wanna electrocute you by accident --” and as Meta narrows his eyes, the King hastily adds, “Not that I’m implying you won’t dodge it or nada, just don’t want you caught up if the hammer decides to explode this time.” He stops his stretch to pick up his hammer. “I think ol’ triple-D is the way to go this time,” he finishes. 

There is a pause then. “Unless you think I’m not up to it as is,” the King says suddenly and when Meta Knight eyes him, he looks away. “I can go grab my other kit if so.”

He is aware then of a sudden vulnerability the King is exposing to him. Old Meta Knight would’ve pounced on that weakness, used it, abused it. Now, Meta Knight feels...different. There is no inkling of spite inside him, neither the urge to seize Dedede’s self-conscious fragility and mock it. He’s beyond that, somehow. Now he looks at King Dedede and feels a kinship with that nervousness. 

Kirby’s effect, he thinks with laughter. Perhaps he has gone soft.

He speaks, because King Dedede is still looking at him expectantly. “Do not fret too much on your ability, Dedede,” he says. “You are more than adequate without your mechanizations.”

No sooner than the words come out of his mouth he realizes his mistake. Dedede blinks, surprised and as the words settle between them, a smile starts to creep across the King’s face. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say that’s a compliment,” he says slyly. “You got a soft spot for me then, little knight?”

_ Oh, bother.  _ Meta Knight can see the laughter of Sailor Dee right in his mind and before he knows it, he’s going red. Thank the stars Dedede’s not looking because he’s certain that his mask can’t cover this fluster. “Do not read too far into it,” he threatens weakly back at the King. 

That doesn’t stop Dedede. “More than adequate,” the King marvels, grin jagged and  _ knowing _ . “Where’s a video recorder when you need one? I gotta write this down;  _ dear diary, today Meta Knight called me more than adequate _ \--”

Meta swats him again. This time he puts enough force in the blow to knock Dedede back onto the ground. The King sputters and when he comes back up, there’s vindictive delight in his eyes. “Oh, you’ve done it now,” he chuckles and attacks.

Meta Knight blocks -- then, silently retorts:  _ I wouldn’t have it any other way. _

(He’s whipped, he thinks quickly after.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finally able to write this! Next up: the letter.


End file.
